Buckeyes expect to climb the polls after victory over Minnesota

Todd Porter

Saturday

Sep 27, 2008 at 12:01 AMSep 27, 2008 at 3:32 AM

Counted out and left for dead in Los Angeles, Terrelle Pryor is trying to write another script for Ohio State. The Buckeyes didn’t just take a step Saturday toward their third straight outright Big Ten championship, they took many of them.

Counted out and left for dead in Los Angeles, Terrelle Pryor is trying to write another script for Ohio State. The Buckeyes didn’t just take a step Saturday toward their third straight outright Big Ten championship, they took many of them.

On the legs of its freshman quarterback and its healed bruising running back, Ohio State ran through and over Minnesota during a somewhat sleeping 34-21 win. A usually balance offense became decisively one-dimensional Saturday. OSU ran it 37 times for 279 yards and threw it 22 times for 135.

“I hope to throw it more effectively down the road than we did today,” Head Coach Jim Tressel said. “It didn’t feel as if we threw and caught and protected as well as we’re going to have to. ... I hope we’re a balanced team.”

Ohio State will likely climb in the new polls today. Previous No. 1, USC, was upset on Thursday night. No. 4 Florida lost to Mississippi. All of that happened before No. 8 Alabama ever lined up against No. 3 Georgia.

Saturday’s win sets up a showdown at Camp Randall against No. 9 Wisconsin.

Is the door opening for the Buckeyes?

“What other people say about our team, we really don’t care,” Pryor said. “The media and the people on ESPN can sit there and talk stuff on our team. They say we’re dead. We’ll find out this week coming up who’s dead. We’re out to show the world something, and we’re going to.”

Maybe that’s youthful confidence talking. After all, Pryor ran the ball eight times for 97 yards, including two touchdowns. He completed just 8-of-13 passes for 70 yards a touchdown, too.

This week the Buckeye head to No. 9 Wisconsin. A win there could propel them back into the national title scope.

“Like (ESPN analyst) Mark May said, ‘Let’s see how (I) play on the big stage,’” Pryor said. “We’re gonna see next week. I’m sick of people saying we’ll see how he plays against the Top 10. We’ll see.”

Beanie Wells welcomed himself back to the field with a 28-yard run on his second carry and the fourth play of the game. As soon as OSU’s offense took the field to start the game and Wells trotted out with them, he received a standing ovation.

Wells’ run took the ball to the Minnesota 33. On the next play, Pryor handled a high snap, faked a handoff to Boom Herron and took off around right end for a 33-yard score and a 7-0 OSU lead. It was the most impressive start to a game this season. The five-play, 75-yard drive was the most effiecent drive of the year for Ohio State.

“Coach Tressel calls it a tone-setter,” Pryor said. “I love getting the ball first ... and I love setting a tone.”

Wells carried the ball 14 times for 106 yards. He had a 21-yard run before halftime in which he hurdled Gopher safety Kyle Theret. His injured right foot wasn’t an issue.

Hanging on to the ball was, though.

On OSU’s second possession, he powered through the line and laid a hit on Gopher defensive tackle Garrett Brown, but Wells fumbled the ball. Minnesota recovered and converted the mistake into a 34-yard field goal to cut into OSU’s lead, 7-3.

Wells and Pryor in the same backfield providing an interesting, if not impossible, dynamic for Minnesota.

After a Minnesota field goal in the first quarter, OSU’s offense clicked again.

The Buckeyes’ second scoring drive -- a time-consuming 82-yard march that ended with a Ryan Pretorius field goal -- was kept alive after a 38-yard run on third-and-3 by Pryor to the Gopher 20. On third-and-18 from the 28, his last-second option pitch to Herron went for 17 yards and OSU picked up the first down at the Minnesota 9. The Buckeyes sputtered from there.

OSU’s offense was feast or famine. Wells and Pryor gashed Minnesota on long running plays.

“Football is about explosive plays and turnovers, and Ohio State won both of those battle,” UM Head Coach Tim Brewster said. “... Pryor is a gifted played. He has a tremendous future. I saw (Vince Young) of Texas and they’re similar players.”

Minnesota tacked on two touchdowns against OSU’s defense in the final eight minutes.

“I think we lost a little bit of our edge in the back half of the third quarter and some of the fourth,” Tressel said. “But our kids played hard and they understand that next week is step No. 2 in the Big Ten.”

If it’s anything like the first step, there will be a lot of them.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Beanie Wells hasn’t played a down of football since the first half of the season opener. That’s when he winced on the field at Ohio Stadium and some wondered if a right foot injury would finish the Heisman Trophy-caliber back’s season early. After missing the last three weeks, Wells was back on the field and his presence was obvious. OSU offense looked more confident.

Wells finished with 14 carries and 106 yards, including a 28-yarder on the first series and a 21-yard run before halftime. His 21-yarder was the talk of the locker room after the game. Wells hurdled a Minnesota defender for a couple more yards.

“I was surprised I got up that high wearing those boots,” said Wells, who wore high-top football shoes.

PLAY OF THE GAME

Freshman QB Terrelle Pryor adds a dynamic to OSU’s offense that has to be respected. He can turn nothing into something, and at 6-foot-6, 230 pounds, he’s strong enough to shake off a potential sack or deliver a blow to a defender. Pryor ran eight times for 97 yards, including TD runs 33 yards and another from a yard out on a QB bootleg. His 295 rushing yards leads OSU.

Pryor also completed 8-of-13 passes for 70 yards and a TD pass to Brian Robiskie.

WHY OHIO STATE WON

The Buckeyes established a tone early in the game when the offense marched down the field in just five plays and covered 75 yards. When the offense needed to make a play, it usually did. Getting Wells back and pairing him with Pryor in the backfield is a tough combination to stop.

The defense forced three turnovers and OSU’s offense turned those into 10 points. The game turned around, though, on a controversial call when Anderson Russell recovered fumble at the 35. Wells hurdled the defender and Pryor finished the drive with a perfect 8-yard pass to Brian Robiskie for a 20-3 lead before halftime.

PRYOR-ITIES

There are times when Terrelle Pryor tries to talk like a freshmen QB with a lot to learn.

“My performance? Let’s keep it at as (I) keep getting experience and getting better every day. ... There’s some things you can tell I’m young.

Then there are times when you can hear the edge in his voice. After he delivered a shoulder blow to a Gopher defender on Minnesota’s sideline, Pryor said a couple plays before that a Minnesota coach questioned his toughness.

“I ran out of bounds on a play and a coach or someone said, ‘Why don’t you put your head down and run?’ I was like OK. ... A couple plays later, ... I was like here it is. If you’re a man, you’ve got to prove it.”

THIS WENT WELL

The running game worked well with Pryor and Wells. They combined for 203 yards on just 22 carries. Putting Pryor in the shotgun creates natural seams in the defense and Wells found it easier to run. OSU went primarily with the run because the Gophers run a 3-4 defense and don’t give up many big plays.

THIS DIDN’T

Poor Todd Boeckman doesn’t seem like he can buy a break from his teammates. When he came in the game the offense looked like an unmade bed at times. A drive stalled once because of mental mistakes and penalties. Boeckman did connect with Brian Robiskie on a 31-yard TD pass, but the guess is in closer games -- like the one coming up -- Boeckman may not play at all and Pryor will be left in so the offense maintains its rhythm with him.

MILESTONES

Pryor’s 97 yards rushing set the OSU record for yards gained on the ground by a freshman QB. Art Schlichter had the previous record with 77.

Robiskie and Brian Hartline have now caught a pass in 29 and 23 consecutives games, respectively.

Donald Washington had the second interception of his career and first this season when he picked off Adam Weber.

THEY SAID IT

“As the big games come up, you’ve got to produce. If you don’t produce, you’re not what you say you are. When a big game comes up, like next week, that’s great. Wisconsin is a great team. ... We have to produce.”

Freshman QB Terrelle Pryor on stepping up his play against No. 9 Wisconsin on the road next week.

The Repository

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.